Icon: enlarge
Hundreds of Chinese ships have moored on Whitsun Reef, according to the Philippine Coast Guard
Photo: AP
The South China Sea is again the scene of a dispute between Manila and Beijing: The Philippines have accused China of hostile intrusion into their territorial waters.
More than 200 Chinese boats were near the controversial Whitsun Reef, said Philippine Defense Minister Delfin Lorenzana on Sunday.
He called on Beijing to "stop this break-in and recall those boats that violate our maritime law and our sovereign territory."
On Saturday, a Philippine government agency reported the discovery of around 220 Chinese fishing boats around 320 kilometers west of the Philippine island of Palawan.
The boats would have formed a "line formation".
“Despite the clear weather”, the Chinese boats had gathered in front of the reef without engaging in “fishing activities”.
The circumstances led to "concerns about possible overfishing and destruction of the marine environment as well as a threat to navigation safety," said the authority responsible for monitoring the South China Sea.
The Philippine Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin lodged a diplomatic protest note.
It may not stop there.
The Philippine military has already announced that investigations are underway, on which further action will be based.
This is not limited to diplomatic protest, said Major General Edgard Arevalo, according to the Reuters news agency, without being more precise.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila has not yet commented on the allegations.
In the past, the USA repeatedly accused China of "intimidating, coercing or threatening" other nations.
Beijing wants to enforce its controversial sea area claims in the South China Sea.
One of the most important international trade routes runs through this area between China and Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
It also has a large fish population and there are suspected rich oil and gas deposits in the bottom.
Just under five years ago, judges in The Hague largely upheld the Philippines in the dispute over the area.
Accordingly, there is no basis for China to claim historical rights to the resources in the sea area.
Icon: The mirror
jus / AFP